"These images, and all the others I have seen showing shrapnel damage are consistent with a large high-explosive fragmentation SAM [surface-to-air missile] warhead exploding in close proximity to the airliner," says Justin Bronk, a military sciences research analyst with the Royal United Services Institute.

"Since the only SAM system known to be in the area that is capable of reaching MH17 at 33,000 feet is the SA-11 'Buk', it seems very likely that this was the weapon used to shoot down the Malaysian flight," Bronk says, adding that the limited images available of the damage are consistent with this theory.

Douglas Barrie, a Senior Fellow for Military Aerospace with the International Institute for Strategic Studies, agrees.

The photographic evidence “was consistent with the kind of damage you would expect to see from the detonation of a high explosive fragmentation warhead of the type commonly used in a SAM system," he told the FT.

American officials said on Friday that they believe the Boeing 777 was brought down by an SA-11 missile fired from an area of eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian separatists. U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power said the Russians might have provided technical help to the rebels to operate the systems.

A Ukrainian government adviser, Anton Gerashenko, also said the plane was taken down by a missile fired from a Buk launcher, a system developed by the former Soviet Union.

Nick de Larrinaga, a defense analyst at London-based think tank IHS Jane's, echoed that point, saying that medium-altitude SAM missile systems such as the 9K37 Buk (also known as the SA-11 'Gadfly') or the S-300 (aka SA-10 ‘Grumble) "could all have been used in this scenario."

“Russia and Ukraine have such SAM systems in their inventories,” de Larrinaga said.

"My guess is the system's radar saw a return from a big 'cargo' plane flying at 30,000 feet or so and either automatically fired, or some aggressive, itchy operator fired, not wanting to miss an opportunity. It doesn't seem they chose to seek any additional data before pulling the trigger," said retired U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Robert Latiff.

Once targeted by such a potent weapon, the Boeing wide-body twinjet would have had little chance.

A SA-11 missile carries an explosive warhead that detonates within 65 feet of its target, shredding the plane with tiny pieces of red-hot metal. The airliner, which is pressurized at cruising altitude to allow its passengers to breathe, would then rapidly depressurize, knocking out everyone on board before tearing into pieces.

Edward Hunt, a senior consultant for IHS Jane's, which provides news and analysis on defense and geopolitical issues, said a commercial plane is not a difficult target for someone who knows how to operate a surface-to-air missile system.

"Civilian aircraft fly in a straight line," Hunt said. "A civilian aircraft doesn't try to take evasive action. It probably didn't even know it was targeted."

Neither did the passengers.

“You have such horrific forces that it’s essentially unsurvivable,” James Vosswinkel, chief of trauma and surgical critical care at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and the man responsible for a definitive study of TWA Flight 800, told Bloomberg News.

“No one was conscious or experienced that fall.”

Mashable's Lorenzo Franceschi Bicchierai and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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